Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

The Russiancomposer Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov was born at Tikhvin on 18 March 1844 into an aristocratic family which did not approve of his becoming a musician. He was sent to study mathematics and navigation in St Petersburg and later joined the Russian Navy.

Famously, he wrote his first symphony whilst still active in the navy, and appeared on stage in naval uniform to acknowledge applause at the end of the work's first performance.

Later he became a professor of composition and orchestration at the St Petersburg Conservatory, but felt that he knew nothing and had to bluff his way through the classes. He began to study harmony and counterpoint at home so that, after a few years, he had become an excellent teacher, and is now acknowledged as a master of orchestration.

From around 1890, Rimsky Korsakov began to suffer from angina, and in 1905 he sided with conservatory students who took part in the February Revolution and was (temporarily) removed from his appointment. His work was also banned by the police. The stress from this episode accelerated his illness, and he died in Lyubensk on 21 June 1908.